Building a living lab on a barrier island

We are involved with several other organizations in a cool project to establish a network of environmental sensors on Ossabaw Island, south of Savannah. Ossabaw Island is owned by the state of Georgia and dedicated to education and research as a heritage trust. Various groups visit the island frequently to study the environment and history. The idea behind this network is the visitors (students, teachers, researchers, etc) can continue to monitor the island once they return home via any computer.

We are working with the Georgia DNR, who manages the island and the Ossabaw Foundation and Ossabaw Educational Alliance, who are responsible for the education programs there. We also have to give credit to Georgia Power and the Georgia Research Alliance. Between the two of them, they are funding most of the project. Georgia Power has funded a power grid on the island and the installation of a broadband wirelss communications system to handle the data. GRA recently provided a $100,000 grant for additional sensors and networking equipment.

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The Great Doliolid Hunt

Skidaway Institute researchers probe doliolid secrets

Doliolids are tiny marine animals so transparent they are practically invisible. Yet, these rarely seen and little understood organisms are a major driver of the marine ecosystem on continental shelves around the world. University of Georgia researcher Marc Frischer recently completed a major field study in the South Atlantic Bight on the continental shelf off the coast of Georgia in an effort to understand these mysterious animals. The study, funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, involved 25 research cruises over a two-and-a-half-year period.